Deck The Halls
by flashpenguin
Summary: Knowing that Reid is going to be alone for the holidays, JJ and Henry decide to share their Christmas with him. Pinch hit for CCOAC Gift Exchange. 2 Chapters.
1. Chapter 1

_Sorry it's so late in arriving. The best laid plans of mice and men…and then life comes at you fast! This is a pinch hit written for **I luv criminal minds and JONAS**. Hope you like it. _

_**Prompts**: Hot chocolate, Christmas Tree, and Christmas movies_

_**Song prompt: "Deck The Halls" by Peter Cetera and Allison Krauss**_

**Deck The Halls**

JJ pulled her SUV next to the curb and put the engine in park. It was two in the afternoon on Christmas Eve and by the look of the sky, Dale City was about to get layered in snow. Just in time for Christmas. And with the team out of town for various holiday gatherings, she wanted to do something special for the one who had been left behind.

"Mommy," Henry's small voice piped up from the backseat, "is Uncle Spencer home?"

JJ looked at her son in the rearview mirror. "I don't know. Maybe we should check and see." She unfastened her seatbelt and turned off the engine.

"I hope he is. I want him to see my present I got him." The little boy bounced happily in his seat. "Come on, Mommy! Get me out!"

JJ laughed. "Hold on, Munchkin Man; I'm hurrying." Opening the driver's side door, she checked for traffic before stepping out in the street. Walking around the SUV, she opened the back passenger door. "Do you want to get out?" she teased.

"Yes! I want to see Uncle Spencer." Henry kicked his feet excitedly.

"Okay." JJ reached down and unfastened the car seat. "There you go. Stay by me," she advised as the child rushed out. Stretching, she grabbed the haphazardly wrapped box. "Here is your present for Uncle Spencer. Hold it tight. Okay?"

"'kay, Mommy." Henry wrapped his small arms around the box as though it held the world.

JJ opened the back hatch and grabbed the half dozen bags full of various items - some wrapped, others not. With her elbow, she pushed the hatch down until it snapped shut. "Come on, Henry," she said and started walking up the narrow path toward the porch.

Climbing the stairs, she waited for Henry before hitting the door bell. The melodious sound of the Doctor Who theme sounded faintly thru the door. As the pair waited patiently, JJ listened carefully for any sounds of footsteps. All was quiet, so she rang again.

"Mommy, I'm getting cold," Henry whined. "Where is Uncle Spencer?"

"He's coming; give him a minute," JJ said. She rang the bell one more time.

A minute passed, and finally footsteps.

"Hold on," Spencer called out. "I'm coming." The sound of the lock turning and the chain coming off, before the door was thrown open. "Who in the world…?" he said and stopped as he recognized the pair standing on his porch.

"Hi, Spence," JJ greeted.

"Merry Christmas!" Henry called out.

"JJ? Henry? What are you doing here?" Spencer was flummoxed as he took in the bags and boxes in his friend's hands.

"I'm going in 'cause I'm cold!" Henry announced and rushed inside.

"No, Henry," Spencer called out, "I don't think…"

"Mommy, you were right," Henry's small voice sounded, "Uncle Spencer don't have nothing here for Christmas!"

"The proper grammar is: doesn't have anything," Spencer correct. "Wait! Why do you care what I have and don't have?"

"We brought you Christmas." JJ smiled softly. "Let me come in, Spence."

Spencer frowned. "Uh, okay." He stepped aside to let her walk inside. Softly he closed the door behind her. "Jayje…"

JJ turned around slowly in the large, spacious room that was sparsely but nicely furnished. There was a couch and a love seat, a chair and an entertainment centre with the best audio visual system. But most impressive than the entertainment system was the numerous bookshelves that lined the three walls. Eight feet tall, each shelf was filled with books of various sizes.

"Wow!" she exclaimed. "How many of those have you read?" She tried a mental count but stopped because she lost track.

Spencer considered her question with an amused grin. "All of them."

JJ gave a short embarrassed laugh. "Of course."

"Do you want me to take any of those for you?" he offered and stepped forward.

"Yeah. Thanks." She handed over the large box. "Can I put these in your kitchen?" she asked.

"It's down the…" he started.

"Down the hall to the right. I remember." JJ hurried toward the back of the house.

Setting the box on the coffee table, Spencer slowly opened the lid. Reaching in, he carefully looked at the various ornaments and boxes of lights. "What is this?" he asked out loud to himself.

"It's ornaments for the tree," Henry answered.

Spencer picked up the penguin ornament and examined it. "I don't have a tree."

Henry bounced on the couch happily. "Yes you do! Mommy and me got you a tree!"

"You got me a tree?" Surprise was in his voice. Spencer put the penguin back in the box.

"A BIG one!" Henry shouted and spread his arms wide. "You're gonna like it."

"Henry, stop jumping on the couch before you fall and hurt yourself," JJ admonished as she walked back into the living room.

"You got me a tree?" Spencer asked hollowly.

"A BIG one!" Henry repeated. "You gots to see it!" Henry jumped off the couch and ran over to Spencer and grabbed his hand. "Come on!" With all the strength of a four year old, Henry pulled and tugged on his uncle's hand toward the front door.

Spencer opened the door and let the little boy take him out on the porch.

"See?" Henry cried out happily. He pointed to the SUV.

"You got me a tree," Spencer whispered in awe. "Jay…I…"

JJ laid a hand on his shoulder. "I know. Let's go get the tree before it starts snowing," she said with a gentle knowing smile. Together they walked toward the car.

Spencer looked at the sky. "I don't think it's going to snow. Look at the clouds and how high they are. Statistically, high clouds indicate that there won't be snow. Plus, it's too warm."

JJ looked at him and laughed. "You _are_ from Southern Nevada. And speaking from a country girl point of view, those clouds tell me to get inside and bundle up." She loosened up the ropes holding down the large Evergreen. At that moment, tiny white flakes softly fell from the sky.

"You got your end?" she asked. Spencer nodded. "Good. Let's get inside!"


	2. Chapter 2

_Second chapter of my pinch hit is up. I know some would have liked for me to go a bit further into the "relationship" but I wanted to keep this a friendship. AND really, this isn't my pairing, so forgive me because I look at JJ/Reid as siblings rather than lovers._

**Deck The Halls**

After securing the large tree in the base, JJ left Spencer and Henry alone to decorate while she fixed dinner.

Two hours later, JJ was taking the ham out of the oven and readying the mashed potatoes when a knock on the door frame startled her.

"That smells good," Spencer complimented with an appreciative sniff.

JJ gave him a big smile and set the baking dish on the stove. "Thanks. I hope you're hungry."

"I hadn't given much thought to what I was going to eat tonight," he said as he walked in. "Take out Chinese is usually on the menu."

"Spence! You could have come over to our place for dinner!" JJ stated, her voice tinged with undisguised hurt that he didn't consider giving her a call.

"I didn't want to bother anyone." He gave a shrug and looked at the cooling rack that contained cookies. "Are those chocolate chip?" he asked. His eyes gave the baked goods a hungry look.

"Those are for dessert."

"Did I hear 'chocolate chip cookies'?" Henry cried out happily as he appeared out of nowhere.

"They are for after dinner," JJ explained.

"Please?" Henry pleaded as pathetically as a three year old could. His blue eyes resembled that of a puppy dog. Immune to her son, JJ continued putting the finishing touches on dinner.

"Please?" Spencer asked. He imitated his godson perfectly - down to the pouting bottom lip.

JJ snorted a laugh and nearly lost it when she remembered at the last minute that she was a seasoned profiler. Donning a mask of neutrality, she stared at the two men.

"One."

Henry reached up and grabbed a cookie in each hand. "One for me, one for Uncle Spencer."

"No," JJ corrected. "One to be split evenly between the two of you." She took the extra cookie away and set it back on the plate. "Now, you two need to scram. I want you to wash up for dinner."

Henry's little feet pattered on the carpeted hallway. Spencer turned, paused, then looked at JJ.

"I - thank you, Jayje." He seemed uncomfortable.

"You're welcome." JJ started mashing the potatoes. "We're eating in twenty minutes."

Spencer smiled and left the room.  
>*****<p>

"That was amazing," Spencer complimented as he handed the dishes to JJ, who was standing in front of the sink washing and rinsing.

"It wasn't much…" she started.

"It was more than what I had had planned," Spencer shrugged. "And I have leftovers for a few days," he joked.

JJ scrubbed at the baking dish. "I'm just glad you had everything I needed to make this all work." She lifted the glassware under the running water to rinse off the suds. "How is it a guy who doesn't know how to cook has all of this wonderful cookware?"

Spencer took the dish and laid it in the drainer. "I wanted to learn. I bought all the books by every chef and cook. And I spent a fortune on pots and pans." He shook his head sadly. "I guess I'm not supposed to be a genius at everything."

JJ watched the sadness dart across the young man's face. And her heart went out to him. "Oh Spence," she whispered and almost touched his shoulder when he smiled at her. "Oh! That wasn't nice!"

He laughed heartily. "No it wasn't, but it was funny. Honestly, I haven't had time to learn to cook; crime keeps getting in the way."

JJ finished the rest of the dishes and then rinsed her hands. "I know what you mean. Sometimes it's just easier to stop at the Mickey D's drive thru and pick up a Happy Meal for Henry instead of cooking for one and a half people." She dried her hands off on a paper towel. Throwing the damp item into the refuse bin, she turned toward Spencer.

"So, when do I get to see the tree?" she asked with a laugh. "Or dare I?"

"Come on," Spencer offered and dragged her by the hand to the living room. "Close your eyes," he ordered. "Henry, are you ready?"

"Ready, Uncle Spencer!" Henry shouted. "I plug it in."

"Okay, Jayje, open your eyes."

JJ opened to see the tree she had bought heavily decorated - albeit haphazardly as though drunken elves had completed the job - but it still brought tears to her eyes. "Oh," she breathed, "it's beautiful."

"Uncle Spencer said you could put the star on, Mommy." Henry handed her the star. Standing on tip toe, JJ reached to set the star on the pointed tip of the top branch. "That's pretty, Mommy."

"It is," she agreed. "Now, how about some hot chocolate to go with those cookies I made?"

"Yeah! And me and Uncle Spencer can pick out a movie." Henry ran over to the bag on the coffee table and began rummaging thru it.

Ten minutes later, all three were tucked on the couch with mugs of chocolate topped with marshmallows and a plate of homemade cookies. The lights were out - save for the twinkling ones from the tree - and the movie on the TV.

"_Dave likes to wear, dirty underwear, with little hairs…" Alvin sing songed in high falsetto.  
><em>

"_We're getting off on the wrong foot. Allow us to introduce ourselves. Hello, I'm Simon, the smart one. He's Alvin…"_

Henry laughed out loud. "I like him! Simon's my favourite!"

"You do know that chipmunks can't talk, right?" Spencer said as he watched the TV screen and tried to fathom what was so funny about obnoxious animals that were obviously animated.

"I know that," Henry gave an exasperated sighed. "They're pretend."

"But…"

"Spencer, enjoy the movie, okay?" JJ suggested under her breath. "You might find that you like it." Before he could respond, she shoved a cookie in his mouth. "Now quiet."

An hour later, Spencer was wiping away a tear. "You were right," he whispered. "It was good." He tried to shift his weight being careful not to disturb the sleeping four year old burrowed into his side.

"Want to watch the sequel?" JJ asked as she got up and gathered the dirty dishes.

"There's a sequel?" Spencer squeaked. He started looking thru the bag for the DVDs.

"Actually there are _two_ sequels," she corrected with a smile. "We can wait until Henry's conscious to watch the others."

"Oh, okay."

"I'll be back in a second." JJ disappeared into the kitchen and returned a couple minutes later. "The last of the hot chocolate." She handed the mug to Spencer.

"I can't thank you enough for doing all of this," he said as he sipped the hot, rich liquid.

JJ set her drink down and went to move Henry but Spencer waved her off as he pulled the afghan from the back of the couch. "Let him sleep." With one hand, he covered the sleeping child.

"Want me to put another movie on?" JJ asked.

"What do you have?" He glanced at the stack of movies.

"It's A Wonderful Life, Miracle On 34th Street - both versions, A Christmas Carol…" she listed off the titles one by one.

"It's A Wonderful Life," Spencer answered.

JJ put the movie in and hit play on the remote. As the beginning credits rolled, an awkward silence fell over the pair.

"You didn't go to New Orleans this year," Spencer said quietly.

JJ studied her mug. "Will was supposed to come up here for Christmas, but he got picked to go to a conference in San Francisco the day after Christmas and with the weather being unpredictable…" her voice trailed off. "Any way, he is coming back after New Years." She took a long sip. "I thought you would be going out to Vegas."

Spencer shrugged indifferently - or at least tried to, but the pain was on his face. "I called my mother's doctor last week and he said that she still isn't up for visitors."

"Refusing to take her medications?" JJ asked politely.

"I keep hoping that eventually I'll get thru to her and she'll be like I remember before everything fell apart." He shifted his eyes to the TV screen. "You know, Christmas was the one time she and I claimed for our own. We would get a tree and decorate it with quotes from our favourite poems. And she would turn the air conditioner up until we needed sweaters. Then she would make hot chocolate with marshmallows and we would…"

"Watch 'It's A Wonderful Life," JJ finished softly.

Spencer looked surprised. "How did you know?"

"A mom just knows these things." She blinked back the sudden rush of tears.

"As she got worse and retreated further into herself, Christmas was just a distant memory that I replayed." He nodded to the tree and the TV. "This makes me not miss her so much."

JJ bit her lip to keep crying.

"To be honest, it was Henry's idea to come here and surprise you. He bought you a gift and hoped that you were home. Lucky for us you were."

"Statistically, the odds were fifty/fifty…"

JJ rolled her eyes. "I get it. Any way, I should get him home." She moved to get up.

"No, don't; let him sleep. I have a spare bedroom you two can use." JJ looked at Spencer. "I mean, after all, tomorrow is Christmas and neither of us have to go anywhere…" He gave her what he hoped was a charming smile. Heck, it worked for Morgan, so maybe he could give it a try.

"If you don't mind?"

"No. Besides, you have to stay and watch the movie." He motioned for her to sit back down. "I want him to see me open my gift."

"Oh Spence."

"Though compared to the one he already gave me…" Spencer tried to find the words to express what he felt.

Reaching over, JJ covered his hand with hers. "Merry Christmas, Spencer."

"Merry Christmas, JJ." Spencer looked at the sleeping child. "Merry Christmas, Henry," he whispered.

A snore was Henry's only reply. Though a smile was on his lips because in his dreams, it was already Christmas morning.

**The End**


End file.
